Tyre thereupon handed its reins over to him, repudiating its partisans, its troops, and its commanders. Once Ṣafad had fallen, the city understood that its own shackles were sure to be fastened beside hers. From Tyre the Sultan moved on to the fortress of Kawkab, the headquarters of the Hospitallers, just as Ṣafad had been the redoubt of the Templars. Of all the Franks, these two orders were the most loathed by Sultan al-Nāṣir Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn; whenever any of them were taken prisoner, he would scarcely leave one alive.

He besieged the fortress of Kawkab until it was subdued, killed its fighting men and captured the rest, thus freeing travellers from the evil of its inhabitants. The coastal regions were thereby pacified, and the dwellings of their people became secure.

All this happened while the heavens poured rain, the winds howled, floods raged, and feet slogged through mud; yet the Sultan remained steadfast, patient, and seeking his reward from Allah. Al-Qāḍī al-Fāḍil was with him through all these trials, an ever-watchful witness.

Acting on the Sultan’s behalf, al-Qāḍī al-Fāḍil wrote to the Sultan’s brother Sayf al-Islām, ruler of Yemen, summoning him to Syria to support the Muslims and strike down the vile unbelievers. For the Sultan was resolved to besiege Antioch in person, while Taqī al-Dīn ʿUmar would invest Tripoli once the year had run its course.

Al-Qāḍī al-Fāḍil then decided to proceed to Egypt, and the Sultan accompanied him part of the way to bid him farewell. He next turned toward the Noble Jerusalem, where he led the Friday prayer and celebrated the Feast of ʿĪd al-Aḍḥā at the Dome of the Rock in al-Aqsā. After that he and his brother, Sultan al-ʿĀdil, set out for Ascalon, where he then granted fiefs.